Afghan schools still prohibit older girls

As classes begin for new year, the Taliban bars female students beyond sixth grade.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — The school year in Afghanistan started Wednesday but without girls whom the Taliban barred from attending classes beyond the sixth grade, making it the only country with restrictions on female education.

The United Nations children’s agency says more than 1 million girls are affected by the ban. It also estimates 5 million were out of school before the Taliban takeover due to a lack of facilities and other reasons.

The Taliban’s Ministry of Education marked the start of the new academic year with a ceremony that female journalists were not allowed to attend. The invitations sent out to reporters said: “Due to the lack of a suitable place for the sisters, we apologize to female reporters.”

During a ceremony, Education Minister Habibullah Agha said that the ministry is trying “to increase the quality of education of religious and modern sciences as much as possible.” The Taliban has been prioritizing Islamic knowledge over basic literacy and numeracy with its shift toward madrassas, or religious schools.

The minister also called on students to avoid wearing clothes that contradict Islamic and Afghan principles.

Abdul Salam Hanafi, the deputy prime minister, said the government was trying to expand education in “all remote areas in the country.”

It previously said girls continuing their education went against the Taliban’s strict interpretation of Islamic law, or sharia, and certain conditions were needed for their return to school. But it made no progress in creating those conditions.

When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan in the 1990s, it also banned girls’ education.

Despite initially promising a more moderate rule, the group has also barred women from higher education, parks and other public spaces as well as most jobs as part of harsh measures imposed after it took over following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces from the country in 2021.

The ban on girls’ education remains the Taliban’s biggest obstacle to gaining recognition as the legitimate rulers of Afghanistan.